graffiti

Sunday, September 02, 2007

Eddie slumped in the rushing water. The stones of his stories were all around him now, beneath the surface, one touching another. He could feel his form melting, dissolving, and he sensed that he did not have long, that whatever came after the five people you meet in heaven, it was upon him now.
"Tala?" he whispered.
She looked up.
"The little girl at the pier? Do you know about her?"
Tala stared at her fingertips. She nodded yes.
"Did I save her? Did I pull her out of the way?"
Tala shook her head. "No pull."
Eddie shivered. His head dropped. So there it was. The end of his story.
"Push," Tala said.
He looked up. "Push?"
"Push her legs. No pull. You push. Big thing fall. You keep her safe."
Eddie shut his eyes in denial. "But I felt her hands," he said. "It's the only thing I remember. I couldn't have pushed her. I felt her hands."
Tala smiled and scooped up river water, then placed her small wet fingers in Eddie's adult grip. He knew right away they had been there before.
"Not her hands," she said. "Those were my hands. I bring you to heaven. Keep you safe."

- The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

I know, a little slow on my part cuz I only just picked up the book yesterday at Pravin's house (we were playing soccer, tennis and badminton from 4-7 pm then dinner at the tables under the condo). But it was such a nice read! I couldn't put down the book until 1 am as it was a page-turner for every chapter.

It got me thinking about my life, and my afterlife. What will my heaven be like? And will I be able to reunite with my loved ones who leave before me? Or after me? Will God finally explain all the things that happened to me during my earth-bound moments, then finally ending off with "See Sook Yee, everything does happen for a reason."?

♥ 2:39 PM